NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-27-2024 11PM EST

Episode Date: November 28, 2024

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Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Dualisa Icautau. A federal appeals court has handed the state of Texas a big win in its fight with the Biden administration over immigration enforcement. NPR's Sergio Martinez Beltran reports. A divided Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Texas can continue to put razor wire on the U-Mexico border, and federal agents are barred from destroying it. The ruling overturns a prior federal court decision. Texas Governor Greg Abbott celebrated the ruling on X. He says his state will continue adding razor wire to prevent unauthorized migrants from

entering the country. This case is one of a few making its way through the courts in a fight between Texas and the Biden administration over immigration enforcement, a role that is supposed to fall under federal authority. Sergio Martinez Beltran, NPR News, Austin. Missouri will soon stop enforcing one of the strictest abortion bans in the country. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum has that story. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey acknowledged a constitutional amendment voters approved this month protecting abortion rights makes the state's near total ban unenforceable. That means the state will allow abortions up to around 24 weeks of pregnancy on December 5th.

But in court filings responding to a lawsuit from the state's Planned Parenthood affiliates, Bailey's office contended that a judge should not strike down other restrictions, including clinic licensing requirements and a 72-hour waiting period. Planned Parenthood officials say getting rid of those other state laws restricting abortion are crucial to reopening abortion access across the state. A judge is slated to consider Planned Parenthood's lawsuit next week. For NPR News, I'm Jason Rosenbaum in St. Louis. In Lebanon, the first day of a ceasefire was marred by violence as two journalists say

they were injured by Israeli gunfire. Jawad Rizwala reports from Beirut. Displaced people returned to their villages, even near the border with Israel, like Chiam, which endured fierce battles until the last day of fighting. A group of journalists documenting their return reported that they encountered Israeli soldiers still in the town, and despite their cameras being visible, they said the soldiers fired at them from a nearby villa. Two of them were wounded, including an Associated Press freelancer who was hit in the leg. The Israeli military said soldiers had, quote, identified suspects in southern Lebanon and fired towards them. AP told NPR they were grateful their freelancer

was okay and journalists must be able to safely operate in Lebanon as they cover the conflict. For NPR News, I'm Jawad Razallah in Beirut. There are growing concerns of another pandemic because of bird flu cases found in US dairy, cows and humans. Health officials recently confirmed bird flu in a child living in California's Bay Area, and the state's health officers last week confirmed bird flu in store-bought raw milk. This is NPR News. A federal judge in Delaware has tossed out a defamation lawsuit against Fox News. Judge Jennifer Hall said defendant Ray Epps, a former Marine and Trump supporter, had failed

to show how the network and former star host Tucker Carlson acted with actual malice. Epps claimed that Fox and Carlson promoted, quote, destructive conspiracy theories and falsely accused him of being a government agent who helped to instigate the January 6th insurrection on the Capitol. Heavy rain is forecast for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade but that's not going to stop four college marching bands from performing in this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Three have been around for generations. Char Dastin of member station WPLN learned how the band at East Tennessee State University went from non-existence to national television.

When Joe Moore became ETSU's band director 10 years ago, he had to start from scratch. That meant buying instruments, designing uniforms, and visiting high schools in the region to recruit. The band quickly became known for elaborate shows that told a story. Moore says he's now sharing the Macy's Day spotlight with schools that are much better known. Those are flagship schools for their states, and we're a regional school. I'm just really proud of my kids for achieving this." The band is 360 members strong, outnumbering the one at the much larger University of Tennessee, Knoxville. For NPR News, I'm Char Dastin in Nashville.

And I'm Dua-Hli-Sai Kow-Tau. NPR News in New York.